A coral reef is very important, coral reefs have many jobs in the ocean, but these are some, “They remove and recycle carbon dioxide…”, reefs can assist with strong waves and storms by absorbing the contact, lobsters find their source of food from coral reefs, as well, without coral reefs many plants and …show more content…
On Treehugger.com I came across this article that caught my interest it discusses how Hawaii would like to ban chemical sunscreens because the coral reefs are becoming suffocated by the chemical. The Hawaii Senator has already presented a bill to the state of Congress to ban the use of sunscreen. The health of the coral reef is important to the Hawaiians because Hawaii is a tourist attraction which is a huge source of income for Hawaii. Sunscreen, when placed onto the body washes away in the water and it is recommended to re-apply at least every hour and a half. When the sunscreen washes away into the water we think nothing of it, will let us find out what really happens to our sunscreen in the water. According to the article, the chemical from the sunscreen causes coral reefs to deform which makes it difficult for reefs to swim, and reproduce. When the health of the coral reef is at risk our climate, also gains a new devastating negative effect. The article provides us with an outrages percentage, “Approximately 80 percent of the corals in the Caribbean Sea have died over the past 40 years.” From that percentage, the article breaks down how much of it is caused by sunscreen, the estimation is, “… 14,000 tons of sunscreen wash off annually into the world’s oceans…” To sum up, the writer advises us that they are other options than to apply sunscreen such as wearing long sleeve t-shirts, sunglasses, even hats can help, but most importantly considering how much sun exposure you expose yourself to